Screening catalytic lipase activities with an analytical supercritical fluid extractor

Two different screenings of several commercial lipases were performed to find a lipase with superior performance for the conversion of lipid moieties to their fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) derivatives under supercritical conditions. The first screening was done under hydrolytic conditions in a buffer. The second screening was done under supercritical conditions with CO₂, utilizing some of the same lipases for the methanolysis of different lipids. For the substrates studied, there was a significant difference in lipase activity under the two above conditions. Significant hydrolytic activity was demonstrated for three different lipid types (triglycerides, sterols, and phospholipids) with Lipase PS30, but when the same lipase was immobilized on an Accurel carrier (polypropylene), the activity decreased considerably. The opposite was found for Lipase G, which showed strong activity when immobilized and under supercritical conditions. Furthermore, Chirozyme L-1 was superior under supercritical conditions. The altered substrate specificity that some of these lipases show in supercritical CO₂ suggests several interesting synthetic options and applications under these conditions.     

Activation and detoxification of dinitropyrenes by cytosol and microsomes from Aroclor-pretreated rats in the Ames and umu assays

PURPOSE: To evaluate the efficacy of topical mitomycin C in treating conjunctival and corneal epithelial dysplasia and neoplasia. METHODS: Seven eyes of seven patients with conjunctival and corneal epithelial dysplasia and neoplasia were treated with one drop of topical mitomycin C 0.04% four times a day for 7 days in alternate weeks. The patients' charts were reviewed retrospectively. Patients with either multiple recurrences or extensive ocular surface involvement were treated. In all eyes, the diagnosis of epithelial dysplasia or neoplasia was confirmed by histopathology before the onset of therapy. Patients were examined at least every 14 days during treatment and examined at intervals after completion of treatment. RESULTS: With topical mitomycin C, six eyes of seven patients had complete clinical regression of their conjunctival and corneal epithelial dysplasia and neoplasia. One eye of one patient had partial clinical regression of conjunctival and corneal epithelial dysplasia. Follow-up after completion of topical mitomycin C therapy and excision of residual disease ranged from 2 to 16 months (mean, 9 months; SD, 4.3 months) and was without clinical sign of recurrence. Topical mitomycin C therapy was associated with transitory ocular discomfort, conjunctival injection, tearing, photophobia, and punctate epithelial keratopathy. CONCLUSION: In this small series of eyes, topical mitomycin C was effective as a treatment for conjunctival and corneal epithelial dysplasia and neoplasia.     

Examining Ethnic, Gender, Language, and Socioeconomic Bias in Oral Reading Fluency Scores among Caucasian and Hispanic Students.

Research has demonstrated that oral reading fluency probes are reliable and valid for indexing reading achievement. If these probes are to be used for decision making, bias must be examined for various factors, including ethnicity, gender, language background, and socioeconomic status. Data from nearly 4,000 Caucasian and Hispanic students in grades one through three were used to examine potential bias in oral reading fluency scores predicting Stanford Achievement Test-Ninth Edition (SAT-9; Harcourt Brace & Co., 1997a, 1997b) Total Reading scores. Using a series of hierarchical multiple regression models, bias was first examined using concurrent SAT-9 scores as the criterion and then examined using subsequent SAT-9 scores as the criterion. The results reveal that it is the combination of factors, not any one in isolation, that significantly contributes to intercept bias findings. Overall, home language emerged as the strongest factor influencing bias in the prediction of SAT-9 scores from oral reading fluency scores. The implications of these findings are discussed as related to current and proposed uses of oral reading fluency probes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Characterization of underivatized lipid biomarkers from microorganisms with pyrolysis short-column gas chromatography/ion trap mass spectrometry

A microvolume Curie-point pyrolysis short-column (5 m) gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) procedure was developed for the characterization of various lipid moieties in microorganisms. High linear flow rates (approximately 175 cm/s) characterized the GC conditions in order to effect an efficient chromatographic transfer and elution of the underivatized diglycerides and monoglycerides, and small modifications were necessary to the ion trap MS system in order for it to accommodate the relatively high gas load. During a typical analysis run anhydrodiacylglycerides eluted within a 5-6-min time frame. Gram-positive bacilli and Gram-negative species were differentiated from each other by the pyrolysis patterns of their lipid components. In spite of the complexity of the analyte, a straightforward visual analysis was achieved with the aid of simple computerized data display procedures. These procedures included examination of (1) total ion current (TIC) profiles of the lipid region of the reconstructed chromatogram, (2) the integrated mass spectrum of this region, (3) selected reconstructed ion chromatograms (RICs), (4) RIC intensity distributions, and (5) corresponding mass spectra. An appealing aspect of the lipid data reduction procedure is that most of it can be accomplished visually without requiring computerized pattern recognition techniques.     

Crystallization of Zircon in Stoneware Glazes

High levels of zircon are required to impart opacity in glazes. Zircon additions of <3 wt% dissolve into the glassy phase; additions of >12% cause all the zircon to crystallize from the glaze. Dynamic high-temperature X-ray diffraction has shown that, during heating, a portion of the zircon dissolves and subsequently recrystallizes, using undissolved zircon crystals as seeds. This recrystallization does not occur at lesser zircon levels, because of a lack of seed crystals. When zirconia is added to the glaze, zircon is formed as elongated crystals at the glaze surface. Lesser zircon levels have been observed in the glazes that have zirconia additions.     

A Hybrid Algorithm for Solving Polynomial Zero-One Mathematical Programming Problems

This paper presents an algorithm for solving large-scale polynomial (nonlinear) zero-one programming problems. The procedure incorporates a mixture of pseudo-Boolean concepts and time-proven implicit enumeration procedures. Significant savings in the time required to obtain optimal solutions results from the use of a minimum cover to analyze the future effect of a particular implicit enumeration iteration. Additional improvement is obtained through the use of a term ranking strategy to control the arborization of the implicit enumeration process. Computational experience demonstrates that this algorithm can reduce the magnitude of the computer solution time for large problems from several minutes to a matter of a few seconds.     

Rates of mass transfer to patch electrodes in disturbed flows using oxygen reduction under limiting current conditions

The cases of a sudden pipe expansion and a sudden pipe contraction are simulated within a flow loop-based test section designed to approximate disturbed conduit flow. Mass transfer rates to patch electrodes at selected positions within the test section have been measured using a limiting current methodology applied to oxygen reduction at copper in 3.5% wt./vol. NaCl. Using both large-scale polarisation linear sweep voltammetry and a potential step current transient technique with hydrodynamic steps, absolute and relative rates of oxygen mass transfer have been examined as a function of Reynolds number and location within the test section. The highest rates of oxygen transfer were observed both within the high velocity area of the test section and close to known regions of flow disturbance. Under the flow conditions used, patch electrode mass transfer relates to wall shear stress, which allowed areas of high mean and high fluctuating wall shear stress to be identified.     

Impact of Ethanol on Benzene Plume Lengths: Microbial and Modeling Studies

Recent legislation in several states has called for the removal of methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) from gasoline. In order to comply with Federal Clean Air Act requirements for carbon monoxide and ozone attainment, ethanol is being considered as a replacement for MTBE. The objective of this study is to evaluate the potential impact of ethanol on benzene plume lengths in subsurface environments following accidental spills of ethanol-blended gasoline. Two types of studies were conducted here. First, laboratory studies were performed using a pure culture indigenous to a gasoline-contaminated aquifer to evaluate the effect of ethanol on the rate of benzene biodegradation under aerobic conditions. Results from microbial studies showed that the biodegradation of 25 mg/L benzene was severely inhibited in the presence of 25 mg/L ethanol. While the enzymes responsible for benzene biodegradation by the culture were inducible, ethanol degradation appeared to be constitutive. Second, a two-dimensional model was developed to quantify the impact of ethanol on benzene plume lengths using weighted-average aerobic and anaerobic biodegradation rates for benzene in the presence and absence of ethanol. Model simulations indicated that benzene plume lengths are likely to increase by 16–34% in the presence of ethanol.     

Unbiased combinations of nonanalog Monte Carlo techniques and fair games

Historically, Monte Carlo variance reduction techniques have developed one at a time in response to calculational needs. This paper provides the theoretical basis for obtaining unbiased Monte Carlo estimates from all possible combinations of variance reduction techniques. Hitherto, the techniques have not been proven to be unbiased in arbitrary combinations. The authors are unaware of any Monte Carlo techniques (in any linear process) that are not treated by the theorem herein.